We
have met the enemy and he is us. You can never rely on
what the other driver will do. Think back to all the mistakes
you've made while driving over the years. Think ahead to the
ones you know you will make in the future. All the other drivers
are just like us! Don't trust them! While you are driving,
keep a wary eye on the other guy and leave yourself plenty
of room. Anticipate the mistakes he might make and be ready
for them. Eventually, he will! Because he's just like us!
When you are driving on "autopilot," you have turned
control of your vehicle over to those other drivers - you
are at their mercy. Their fate is your fate.
If you are too trusting, you are
relying on that other driver for your safety. Is he worthy
of that trust? Every few seconds, some drivers in this country
find out this is a poor bet. Maybe some of those other drivers
are returning from a beer festival! Maybe they just lost a
job, or worse, a loved one. The other driver might be an 11-year-old
who found Dad's keys. Approach driving with the idea that
every other driver is an unpredictable menace and out to get
you. Most collisions occur when the "other guy"
does something we don't expect, or when we do something they
don't expect.
If you accept that everyone makes driving errors, the
next step is to drive with a wary attitude. Be careful of
approaching red lights, because you know a light by itself
never stopped anyone. Watch out for folks getting ready to
pull out from parking beside the road. Look for gaps in lines
of traffic which might be the result of someone pausing to
let another vehicle cross in front of them. (I've personally
witnessed three or four collisions in the past ten years that
happened just this way). There are others: failure to signal
a lane change or turn, or tailgating someone when they are
poking along because they need to make a turn—a turn
they suddenly WILL make when they see it at the last second.
You can think of dozens of others. Be alert to the possibilities
and have a strategy in mind for dealing with them.
<Rule
#1: Pay Attention!
Rule #3: Yield Anyway!>
